Once For Sporty Singles, Nissan’s New Datsun Aims For Families in Indonesia

JAKARTA, Indonesia—Nissan Motor Co.’s once-vaunted Datsun will come to life again next month in Indonesia, where it will be targeted at the emerging economy’s young, increasingly affluent consumers.

But those who fondly remember the old models – popularized for being small, sporty and affordable – may be sorely disappointed.

Rather than the cool, long-nosed cars that made a statement about youth and rebelliousness — and were phased out 30 years ago — the reincarnation, unveiled earlier this week at Nissan Motor’s recently built $330-million production plant in West Java, looks like any other cheap, fuel-saving family vehicle.

Part of the reason for the staid design owes to sales. Low-cost, fuel efficient cars get huge tax discounts in Indonesia while sedans do not. And in trying to tap a larger share of the country’s car-buying market, Nissan – Japan’s No. 2 carmaker by volume – is competing with several other Japanese brands that introduced low-cost, fuel-efficient cars last year.

The Datsuns will sell for between 85 million rupiah (US$7,327) and 103 million rupiah (US$8,879). Nissan says it’s targeting small families with monthly incomes of 12,000 million rupiah (US$1,050) looking to upgrade from their used cars or motorcycles.

It expects to sell 40,000 Datsuns in Indonesia between next month and March of next year.

Nissan first announced its intention to reintroduce the Datsun in India, Indonesia, and Russia back in 2012 in the hopes of attracting aspirational customers in the three high-growth emerging markets.

A look inside Nissan’s new Datsun, a family-car with seats for five people.

Courtesy of Nissan Motor Indonesia

The launch in Indonesia is its last among those three countries.

And while the domestic economy has slowed over the past two years, annual car sales have remained steady. Indonesia sold 1.3 million cars last year, and the number is widely expected to grow to two million within the next four to five years.

Mr. Hasegawa said 70 out of every 1,000 people currently own a car in Indonesia, far below 150 in Thailand and 250 in Malaysia

During a speech at the new Datsun’s launch, Mahendra Siregar, the chief of the Indonesian Investment Board, said the Datsun of the 1960s and 70s had a special place in the hearts of Indonesians.

“For young men it was very prestigious to have a Datsun, especially if you wanted to attract girls,” he said.

The new 1,200-cc Datsuns are likely to attract a different kind of buyer. Named the Datsun Panca, a Sanskrit word for five, the vehicles will seat five people – with two additional fold-down seats in the rear.

“The look of the new Datsuns is very different with the old models,” said Amin Budiyono, a 37-year-old Datsun enthusiast, who runs his own garage outside Jakarta.

“I just hope the new Datsun can live up to its reputation for having good endurance,” he said, noting that he won’t be among those rushing out to buy the new model.

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